At Heritage, we believe that education is an important part of the estate planning process. On this blog we will be sharing some information, articles, and opinions that you may find helpful along your way.

Pennsylvania

04/09/2014

The first thing you need to have is a will. Without one, your assets will be divvied up according to the laws in your state. "It isn't necessarily what you think or want," warns California-based financial adviser Ted George.

Do you really need a will? One word: Yes!

If you don't have a will, then your assets may be divided by state law. Who wants that?

So, how does that work? Your heirs will get a portion based on their relationship to you (e.g., spouse, child, niece, etc.). And, yes, your blackjack-playing brother "Lucky" in Nevada will get the same split as your sister who volunteers with local charities three days a week.

What about any minor children? Your will should state a specific guardian and at least one successor in case the primary guardian cannot or will not serve. You don't want you kids in foster care or staying with Uncle Lucky in Las Vegas if you can help it.

An article from the Times Herald-Record in the Hudson Valley area of New York State, titled "Retirement & Estate Planning,"recently reviewed several other fundamental steps you should take to complete your estate plan.

After setting out the guardianship in your will, the article advises to secure a retirement account and insurance policy with beneficiaries. Finally, you can create trusts, which state how to distribute (and how not to distribute) your assets after your death.

That's a lot to remember. Don't rely on luck (or Lucky).

An additional step is to get the advice of an experienced estate planning attorney so your will and other documents are customized for your specific situation.

12/05/2013

There is a responsibility that comes with wealth, and it does not end at death. It starts with proper planning. Hence, here are some fundamental, effective strategies that advisors can put to use to prevent wealth from dissipating through generations.

We pass along our wealth to the younger generations for a variety of reasons. After all, we would like to ensure their wellbeing and happiness well after we are gone, perhaps for generations to come. Unfortunately, if the transfer is not handled thoughtfully, then a lifetime of work and thrift can disappear faster than the proverbial New York minute.

Thankfully, with the use of some powerful legal planning now, you can structure your wealth succession to preserve and protect the family wealth. The power of the trust planning is becoming more widely known, but it is also just as widely understood.

According to a recent Financial Advisor magazine article titled “Avoiding Wealth’s Death Spiral,” there are plenty of problems trust planning can help prevent.

For example, were you to make an “outright” gift or bequest to a particular family member, then the gift or bequest becomes available to the problems of that family member. Such problems include claims of creditors, civil suits, and the ubiquitous ex-spouses. The well-intentioned inheritance can simply drain away or be taken away with nothing left for other loved ones, present and future.

Depending on the wealth you have to transfer and your goals for your loved ones, present and future, a trust can be fashioned to make it all work. Indeed, you can have your custom-designed trust last from generation to generation (“perpetual” or “dynasty” trusts), name specific conditions for the release or investment of assets, and virtually any terms you can imagine.

However drafted, the trust is inherently powerful because it separates the trust assets from the liabilities of your beneficiaries one and all, protecting and preserving the assets for your family. As the original article explains, trusts are legal tools that can integrate well into a family office arrangement or an overarching family wealth governance document.

The more there is to protect, the more planning that can and ought to be done to protect it from that unfortunate death spiral.